Run Away
by youshi
Summary: Soda runs away after Darry and Ponyboy have a fight. Will they be able to find him before the Socs do?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 

Soda entered his house to find Ponyboy and Darry fighting again. He just went into his room to wait for the fight to end. He figured that it would be ending in a few minutes like they usually did. Sodapop heard his brothers' voices rise and their tempers.

"You know I had a choice to put you in a boys' home!" roared Darry, "You're making me regret that I didn't!"

That stabbed Soda inside. He hated it when they fought. Especially when Darry said things he didn't mean like Pony going into a boys' home.

"Well, I wish you had!" Ponyboy yelled back, "At least I would be away from you!"

Soda then heard Darry punch the wall. He only did that when he was really mad. Soda ran downstairs just in time. Pony and Darry were glaring at each other looking like they wanted to kill each other.

"Hey what's going on here?" said Soda looking from one brother to the next.

No one answered him. They flew at each other. Sodapop stepped between the two brothers before they made contact. Only Pony had noticed his other brother standing in the way, he just stood behind him. By the time Darry had realized it his fist was already coming in contact with the side of Soda's face, who went crashing into the wall. He sat there dazed for a moment waiting for the stars to stop dancing in his eyes. When they came into focus he felt the side of his face where Darry had hit him. It was sore and blood ran from the corner of his mouth. Soda stared at his older brother who was staring straight back at him.

"Little buddy." Darry finally said taking a step forward, "I'm so-"

Soda got up and bolted out of the door and into the night. None he knew had hit him before.

"Soda!" cried Ponyboy as he ran after him with Darry behind him.

Hot tears streamed down Soda's face as he ran. He heard his brothers starting to come closer to him. He veered off into the park gaining only a little bit of distance. In the corner of his eye he saw a Soc's car staring to follow him as he sped through the park. Soda's legs started to hurt from running. It was getting harder for him to keep going. He ran up the steps of a vacant building and slipped between a board that was over a hole were a door should have been. Soda saw the Soc slowly drive away as he pulled the board back leaving him blind by the darkness of the building. He breathed a sigh of relief he definitely did not feel like getting into a fight. He pulled his jacket tighter around him, glad that he hadn't taken it off. He stumbled around the dark trying to find a corner to rest against. For some reason he always felt safer in a corner. There was and unoccupied one in the back of the building. Soda sank to the floor still panting from running. He wondered if he made a bad choice of running away, as he drifted off to sleep.

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"He's gone." cried Pony as he sat down on the couch, "I can't believe that he really left." tears rolled down his cheeks.

"It's all my fault." said Darry his voice wavering, "If anything happens to him I will never be able to forgive myself." Tears formed in Darry's eyes but he wiped them away.

I know that this is a short I just want to see if this chapter goes well. If it does I will post the others. Please R&R!!


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all for reviewing the first chapter! It really makes me feel great to know that people actually like my stories . The reviews motivate me to type the next chapters sooner. I really hope that you will like this next chapter. It's a bit longer. Please R&R!!

Youshi

Chapter 2 

Soda awoke in the morning very stiff from sleeping on the hard concrete floor. Sunlight shone through a hole near the ceiling of the two-story building. He stood up and stretched as he looked around his surroundings. It was an old warehouse of some sort. There were vacant shelves and tables randomly placed on the floor. In the back of the building there were old steps led up the floor above. Soda carefully climbed the rickety steps. The second floor was only a small office that was lees than 1/3 of the actual warehouse. Everything was covered with a thick blanket of dust and cobwebs like the first floor. There was a lone desk in the middle of the room partly covered by a blanket to protect it from the dust. He slowly walked over to the desk leaving more footprints in the dust. Soda pulled off the blanket and a cloud of dust rose into the air making him have a coughing fit. When the coughing past he reached to open one of the drawers when he heard movement downstairs. He froze when he heard voices of six Socs. They were all looking for him.

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"I saw Soda last night going into one of those vacant buildings." said Steve sitting next to Two-bit on the couch, "He was tryin' to get away from the Socs that were followin' him."

"We should try to find him before they do." said Ponyboy.

Pony knew that Soda had never been jumped before. A couple of times he got pretty close but Steve was always near to help him out when he needed it. People change when they get jumped. Especially when a lot of people gang up on only one person. They either end up scared out of your mind and jump at the sight of your own shadow or you become hard. No one wanted Soda to change.

"Well come on then." said Steve jumping up.

They all ran out the door.

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"Hey greaser!" called one of the Socs, "Come on out and play! We know you're in here!"

Soda edged away from the door. He knew that he wouldn't stand a chance against the all the Socs downstairs. Another Soc noticed Soda's footprints going up the steps. Soda's heart pounded in his chest as the Soc climbed the steps. He frantically searched for something he could use to protect himself. Soda pulled out all the drawers of the old desk. As he was doing this, the Soc had came into the small office.

"Tryin' hide greasy?" said the Soc from the doorway.

Soda had seen him before in school. His name was Allen. Brass knuckled gleamed on his hand. Soda picked a large drawer and threw at Allen causing him to go tumbling down the stairs. The other Socs swarmed and started to climb the stairs. Soda threw the rest of the drawers down the stairs buying him some time. Allen came charging up the stairs. Soda threw the dusty blanket over the Soc and shoved him down the stairs. Allen grabbed the greaser's wrist as he fell back down the stairs making Soda fall and crash into the wall and drawers below.

Soda's vision became blurry. Someone was holding his hands behind his back. The Socs took turns punching and kicking him. They didn't even stop when he became unconscious.

Finally a Soc said, "This isn't as fun any more since he stopped movin'."

The others agreed, so they threw Soda into an old table. It broke under his weight. Pieces of wood reigned down on his injured body. Before they left they put the blanket over him and piled other debris on top.

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"There's the building that I saw Soda run into." said Steve, he quickened his step suddenly, "And that's the same car that was followin' him."

Six Socs came out of the building. They piled into the car and drove away.

"Oh man." said Two-bit in disbelief.

The gang had entered the building that the Socs came out of. It was a mess. Tables and shelves were broken and turned over. The air was thick and hazy with dust.

"Soda buddy you in here?" yelled Darry.

There was a faint groan.

"Hang on Sodapop!" yelled Two-bit.

The group spread out in search of their friend. Steve nearly tripped over Soda's foot that was sticking out of one of the large piles that littered the floor.

"I think I found him." yelled Steve starting to clear away the wood that was covering Soda.

The others rushed over and started to help until all that was left was left was a blanket. Steve nervously pulled it away. He was worried about the condition he would his friend in. An odd silence filled the already quiet warehouse as the body was revealed.

Soda was badly bruised and bleeding everywhere. He was pale from loss of blood. His left arm was bent at an odd angle.

"Man, Sodapop." said Steve, he wanted to break down and cry. He had never seen Soda ever look like this before. He never looked this bad even after a big rumble. "We need to get him to a hospital before he looses more blood."

Darry wrapped the blanket tightly around Soda to slow the flow of blood. Then he gingerly picked up his brother into his arms. Once he was standing the gang quickly made their way to the hospital.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 

Lots of people stared as the gang of greasers poured into the hospital. A nurse screamed when she saw Soda in Darry's arms. Steve went up to the reception desk to get a doctor. Soda stirred, His eyes flew open. His pupils were huge, only a thin rim of brown could be seen.

"D-Darry?" whispered Soda staring unblinkingly at his brother, "I-I'm sorry I ran away…I'm sorry…"

"It's okay little buddy." choked Darry cradling his brother close. "It's okay."

Soda's eyes became misty and he shut them again. He kept on mumbling that he was sorry.

A doctor came out with a medical stretcher. Darry laid Soda down on it. And before Darry could blink Soda was rushed off to the emergency operating room.

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Hours passed and Soda was still in surgery. He must have looked worse on the inside than the outside. Finally a doctor came out. Steve ran up to him.

"He's going to be fine." said the doctor, "His left arm is broken and his right ankle is fractured."

Steve let out a sigh of relief.

"But," said the doctor, "He has a possibility of becoming blind. He received some serious blows to his head."

"Blind?" exclaimed Steve. He couldn't even imagine his friend being blind.

"It's a very slim possibility." said the doctor.

"Can we see him?" asked Pony walking up to Steve.

"Sure he's just waking up from the anesthesia now." the doctor replied.

They all followed the doctor down the hall, and stopped in front of Soda's room.

You can go right in." he said, "I'll be back to check on him in a few minutes." he walked away.

Ponyboy opened the door and the group walked into the small hospital room. Pony wanted to start bawling when he saw his brother. Soda was as white as his sheets. A halo of bandages covering his forehead and eyes weaved through his golden blond hair. His shirt was removed and bandages surrounded his chest. His arm and leg were wrapped as well. Tubes connected to blood, IVs and machines surrounded him.

"Soda?" said Steve walking over to a side of his bed that didn't have anything blocking it.

He placed a hand on Soda's shoulder. Soda inhaled quickly and moved a little giving the others signs that he was conscious.

"Is that you Steve?" asked Soda hoarsely.

"Yeah, the gang's all here to see you." said Steve, "There all in here with you."

"Really?" said Soda, "Man, thanks for savin' me guys. Golly, I really wish that I could see ya right now. The doctor said that I'll lose the part coverin' my eyes tomorrow."

"Do ya hurt much Sodapop?" asked Pony.

"Well if I said no I'd be lyin' to you." said Soda giving one of his famous grins.

The doctor from earlier came into the room. "I'm sorry but I have to kick you out now. He needs to get some rest."

"Bye Soda." said Two-bit, "We'll come see ya tomorrow."

"Okay." said Soda, "Hey Darry could you stay a few minutes I need to talk to you."

Darry reluctantly stayed after he told Pony to meet him in the waiting room. He patted Soda on the shoulder to let him know that he was there.

"Darry…I'm sorry." said Soda, "I shouldn't have run away like that."

"Little buddy…" started Darry, "This is all my fault." his voice trembled with emotion, "I shouldn't have gotten so angry. Now you're here and it's all my fault." Darry tried to hold back his tears but they fell away way. "You could become blind, I can never forgive myself for letting this to happen."

Soda was silent for a moment. The only sounds were the beeping of the heart monitor and the hum of the other machines. He finally spoke; in a calm voice he said, "You weren't the one who jumped me Darry. You didn't tell me to run away either."

"But, I was the reason that you did." said Darry whipping away his tears.

"Golly, Darry! This ain't your fault!" said Soda angrily voice rising, "So shut up about it."

Darry blinked in surprise. Soda rarely raised his voice.

"I-I'm sorry for hollerin' at you Darry." Soda's voice was trembling, "All this medication is messin' with my emotions and stuff." He put his right hand over his face. His shoulders shook as he cried.

"Little buddy," said Darry leaning over and hugging his brother, "it's okay. Everything's going to be okay."

The doctor came in once again and told Darry that he had to leave. Darry got up and was just reaching the door when Soda said, "Come and see me tomorrow Darry? Please?"

"Okay little buddy." said Darry with a small smile, "Okay."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 

Darry entered Soda's room just as a nurse was leaving. That made him a little nervous. But, the nervousness disappeared when he saw his kid brother. Soda's bed was raised so that he was in a relaxed sitting position. The bandages that covered his eyes were gone. His dark brown eyes stared blankly at the wall in front of him.

'_Oh my gosh he's blind!'_ thought Darry as he sat in a chair next to Soda's bed. " Hey little buddy." said Darry, "It's me Darry."

"Hey Darry." said Soda still staring straight ahead, "Did anyone else come with ya?"

"No." answered Darry, "Pony's at school and the others are comin' by later."

Soda slowly turned his head in his brother's direction. His eyes shone brightly.

"D-Darry I can see you." said Soda giving one of his famous grins.

A smile quickly spread across Darry's face. When Soda smiles you can't help but smile. The older brother leaned over and hugged Soda; careful not to pull any tubes loose.

"The nurse said that since I'm not blind I can come home sooner." beamed Soda.

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A month passed since Soda came home. (He only had to stay in the hospital for five weeks.) Pony noticed that his brother had change. He had become hard. He didn't cry at all now. Soda used to get worked up about going to the doctors and getting shots. Now he doesn't even let out a whimper when he's getting his blood work done. He started the habit of talking in his sleep. He talks about how much pain he's in; and how scared he is about being jumped again. Once in a while he'll even start to cry. But he would never admit it once he was awake. Soda keeps his mouth shut about all the pain he's in and what happened to him.

"Golly, the doctor gave me some more medicine to take." said Soda coming out of the hospital with Darry. "I have never seen let alone taken so many pills in my life."

Darry smiled to himself. Once in a while Soda would switch back to his old self for a few minutes. It was like the two different personalities were fighting about which one would be his personality forever.

"Well they say that you're getting better." said Darry helping Soda off of his crutches and into the car. "At least your arm healed quickly."

"Yeah." said Soda, "I did not want to be stuck in a wheelchair because I couldn't use crutches."

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"Hey Soda!" smiled Steve, "What did the doc say?"

"Says I'm gettin' better." replied Soda easing himself off his crutches and into a chair, "I got some more stuff to take." He looked at a clock hanging on the wall. "I have to take one of these in a hour." He looked at the little bottle of capsules in his hand and sighed.

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"I'm home!" yelled Ponyboy dropping his schoolbooks into the floor near the couch and heading into the kitchen.

"Hey keep it down. I think Sodapop is sleeping." said Darry leaning against the counter top, "He says that his medicine was making him sleepy."

"Oh." said Pony opening the fridge.

He took out a piece of chocolate cake and closed the door. He turned around a bit to fast causing himself to bump into Darry. The coke in his older brother's hand spilled on Pony's shirt.

"Sorry Pony," said Darry, "but, you gotta watch where you're goin'."

"Okay." said Pony setting down his cake on the counter. "I'll be right back. I have to go change."

Pony walked down the hall and pausing at the bathroom to remove his shirt and put it in the dirty clothesbasket. He opened the door to his room to find it all dark. Except for an open window where the out line of Soda sitting on the edge of bed with his resting on the windowsill.

"Hey Soda." whispered Pony, "You awake?"

Soda started to say something but ended up having a terrible coughing fit that made his whole body shake.

"Soda are you alright?" asked Pony hurrying over to his brother. He could see beads of sweat run down his face.

Soda looked at Pony. His face was pale and streams of blood ran from the corners of his mouth.

"Golly Pony, I ain't feelin' so hot." said Soda, "I think I'm sick. Threw up."

Pony put his hand to Soda's forehead it was really hot. Soda clutched his stomach and doubled over. A stream of curses flowed from his mouth. Soda never swore unless something was really bad.

"Man pony, it hurts." said Soda his face twisted in pain, "it hurts real bad."

That made Pony scared. Soda had never complained about being in pain ever since he came home from the hospital. He let out a small cry of pain before falling on the floor unconscious.

"Sodapop!" yelled Pony kneeling down next to his brother. He took Soda's hand in his. It was cold as ice and it was shaking along with his entire body.

Something was really wrong with Soda. And all Pony could do was scream for Darry.


	5. Chapter 5

A huge thank you to all who left a review. You're awesome!

I don't mind getting critiques, just as long as they're constructive. However, I DO mind people posting things like "UPDATE NOW!!!!!" and saying rude things. (Update please is fine though) I do NOT appreciate it. It won't make me update any faster if you post these things. So please don't do that. Thank you.

I really hope you all like this next chapter! Sorry it's short though!

Youshi

Chapter 5

"Darry!" screamed Pony.

The oldest brother came running into the room. His face paled when he saw Soda.

"Sodapop." said Darry. He swore as he rushed over to his brother. "Man he looks real bad. Go call for an ambulance." He checked his pulse, his heart was beating rapidly. Soda's breath came in short, labored gasps.

"They should arrive here soon." said Pony from calling the ambulance.

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Darry and Pony had to follow the ambulance in a separate car; because Soda had stopped breathing when they were loading him onto the ambulance. The last that the two brothers saw was the medics giving Soda CPR.

Darry was gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were white. Every time they got stuck behind a red light or someone cut in front of them, he would curse until the light changed or the car moved.

"Man I hope he's gonna be okay." said Darry.

"He will be." said Pony, "Soda'll make it. He'll be fine." Pony couldn't imagine anything worse happening to Soda than getting jumped.

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Ponyboy got a glimpse of his brother before they rushed him away to the emergency room. He looked worse than before he much, much paler. The medics already were putting a bunch of needles and tubes in Soda as he disappeared behind the medical doors.

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The gang met Pony and Darry at the hospital. Pony told them what happened as Darry filled out medical forms for Soda.

"I hope he's going to be okay." said Steve taking a seat next to Pony in the waiting room.

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"What's taking them so long?" exclaimed Darry as he paced back and forth in the waiting room.

"Would ya sit down Dar? You're making me dizzy." said Two-bit.

Darry took a deep breath and sat down. He ran his hand though his hair trying to calm himself down.

Three hours passed. A doctor finally came out. He was tall and had short black hair. He looked like he was in his mid-twenties. He studied his white clipboard.

"Are you Sodapop Curtis' brothers?" asked the doctor.

Darry and Pony nodded, stood up and walked over to the doctor.

"I'm Dr. Lewis." said the doctor, "I suppose you want to hear how he's doing right now."

"Yes, is everything okay? What took so long?" asked Pony, all the questions that were making him worry came rushing out.

"Well your brother was suffering from an extreme allergic reaction to his medication." said Dr. Lewis, "It caused his body a lot of damage. He had a stomach ulcer, but the surgeons were able to fix that right away. His appendix had to be removed because it was extremely swollen. Also both his kidneys failed." He turned a page on his clipboard, "He's in need of a transplant." 

"I'm the same blood type as Soda. He can have one of mine." said Darry.

"That's very generous of you." said Dr. Lewis, "But you might want to hear the reason why it took us so long to give you this information."

"What is it?" asked Pony. His hands were shaking slightly with fear of what he was going to hear.

Dr. Lewis looked up from his papers. "You see the reason is that near the end of the surgery…" he paused, "Sodapop's heart stopped."

Pony froze with shock as the thought hit him.

Soda was dead….


	6. Chapter 6

Thank you all who left reviews!! You make me feel so special!! This is the last chapter. I can make another chapter if you all want me to It might take a little longer than the other chapters took but I can try to make one. I hope you enjoy this chapter!! Please review!

Youshi

Chapter 6

"I-is he.." choked Darry. Losing Johnny and Dally was enough. He didn't know if he could take Soda being gone too.

"No he is not dead." said Dr. Lewis, "Luckily we were able to get his heart pumping again."

Darry almost fell over with relief. Soda was still alive.

"How ever," said Dr. Lewis, "We don't know for sure how he's going to do if he doesn't get a kidney soon."

"I can give him one of mine." repeated Darry. He would do basically anything to keep his kid-brother alive.

"Alright." said the doctor, "Then we better get started. You'll need to fill out some paperwork, and get a physical. If you will just follow me."

"Okay." said Darry turned to Pony, "Behave okay? And as soon as you hear more news about Sodapop tell me as soon as you can."

Pony just nodded. He was still processing everything that just happened. Soda basically died then brought back to life, now Darry was going to get cut up for a kidney.

Darry gave a reassuring nod to Steve and Two-bit, who had heard every word about what was going on. Dr. Lewis put a hand on his shoulder and guided him into a hospital room.

A half-hour had gone by when the door of the room Darry was in opened. Darry was lying in hospital clothes on a stretcher with an IV trailing behind him. As he passed he passed the greasers he gave them a nervous smile. All they could do now was wait.

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Pony was almost asleep when Darry returned from the surgery recovery room. He was groggily looking around. He motioned for Pony when he saw him. Ponyboy got up and followed him to his room, where he waited until the doctors left.

"Hey Darry." said Pony, "How are you doing?" 

"Pretty good." said Darry, "The doctors don't want me movin' around too much, I could pop a stitch."

"Hey did the doctors tell you anything about Soda when you woke up?"

"Well they told me a few things." said Darry rubbing his forehead, then looking at Pony with worry in his eyes. "He's not doing to good Ponyboy. They don't know if he'll make it."

Tears welled up in Pony's eyes. Even Darry had tears streaming down his face. Pony hugged his brother as they cried.

"I-I better go back to the others." said Pony, "They'll want to know how you're doing since they can't come in."

"Okay." said Darry inhaling a shaky breath.

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Pony awoke with a start. He still was in the waiting room. He squinted at his watch, it was one in the morning. He looked up to see Dr. Lewis come out of the surgery room shaking his head. Pony could feel his eyes fill with tears.

"I think everyone should hear this." said Dr. Lewis.

Steve and Two-bit woke up right away. They stared wide-eyed along with Pony as they heard about how Soda was doing.

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The three boys poured into Darry's room. (He was already awake) Darry looked up at the tear-streaked faces of his friends, as he was told the news that the doctor said. Darry put his face in his hands and started to cry.

Soda had made it….


	7. Chapter 7

More by demand is the chapter 8 of Run Away . I will only write more if you guys want me to. So no reviews, means no more chapters. You wanted me to write more so I did. I hope you guys like it. I am open for ideas so if you have any please PM them to me. Try not to put them in a review. Thank you.

I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm experimenting with character point of view. It's my first time doing this so I apologize ahead of time if it's bad.

Youshi

Chapter 7

(Soda's POV)

It's been a few hours since the operation. I can barely keep my eyes open for more than ten minutes. The doctors took me off most of my medication so I just have to take four or five different pills. They're watching me like a hawk to see if I'm going to have another allergic reaction or something. The nurses told me that my immune system would be down for a couple of days because of the allergic reaction. Which means that I'm going to be able to get sick easier…great. I have to stay here until everything returns to normal. I want to go home so bad. I hate it here, I feel so helpless. I can't do anything by myself, I can't even take a shower. Golly, I hate that. I can't sleep right either. When I wake up I still feel tired, it's like I stayed out partying all night then going to work on no sleep. I just want to leave.

I close my eyes and go back to sleep.

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"Soda…" said a voice ringing through the darkness of my dream, "Hey Sodapop."

I open my eyes to see my best buddy Steve standing over me.

"Hey Steve." I gave him one of my famous grins, "How's it goin'?"

"Fine Soda." he answered smiling and laughing lightly, "And you?"

"A little tired." the side that had stitches gave a sharp stab of pain along with my other injuries from before. "And a bit sore." I closed my eyes then opened them once the pain was gone. "How's Darry doing?"

"Fine, he's home with Pony." said Steve, "Two-bit drove 'em. He was going to try to come visit you after Darry was set at home. They tried to come see you before they left but, you were sleeping."

"Okay." I said, "Golly, I just want to leave here. I'm tired of bein' trapped in here. If my ankle wasn't still busted I'd walk right out of here." I felt my chest tighten and my eyes get blurry with tears. I just pushed them back. I had no reason to start crying… not any more. I've noticed that I have changed, it's kind of scary. "They're controlling me. I can't do what I want to anymore. It's like I'm a helpless baby. I can't even see the people I want because of the huge chance of getting sick from the germs they can give me."

"Did they tell you when you can leave?" asked Steve.

"At the end of the week I think." I sighed and my side gave another painful stab. I could feel my eyelids getting heavy with sleep.

"Well that's not a long wait." smiled Steve, "Well I should get goin' Sodapop."

"Alright." I said with my eyes barely open, "Tell Darry that as soon as he can to come see me?"

"Sure. Get better buddy." said Steve, "I'll come see ya tomorrow after work or during my lunch if I can."

"Okay." I fell asleep as soon as he closed the door.

I'm sorry that this chapter. I'll try my best to make the next one longer. Please R&R!!

Youshi


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: A HUGE thank you to all who read and reviewed the last chapter and previous chapters. And another thank you to all of you who have been following this story. You guys are awesome . I'm sorry that this chapter took so long! I hope you like it. Please review after you read it. Because remember no reviews no new chapter . Enjoy!

Youshi

Chapter 8

By the time Darry was able to visit, it was time for Soda to come home. Sodapop was brought out in a wheelchair after much arguing. Soda had wanted to walk out by himself. But after being talked to by Dr. Lewis he changed his mind.

Darry smiled as he looked through his rear view mirror at his kid-brother all bundled up and passed out on Pony's shoulder.

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"Man he can sleep through just about anything now." said Darry as he carried Soda with Pony's help, through the house to his room and gently laying him down on the bed.

Pony put Soda's in the corner of the room.

"I'm really glad he's home." said Ponyboy in the kitchen with Darry. Pony was getting out the chocolate cake to celebrate Soda coming home.

The front door flew open of the brothers' house and two young men burst inside, letting the door slam loudly behind them. The two playfully pushed past each other on the way to the kitchen. Darry looked up to see Steve and Two-bit happily sit down at the kitchen table.

"So did ya get him yet?" asked Steve.

"Yeah he's been home for a few hours." said Darry, "He's been sleeping."

"Not anymore." said Soda, "I would have been down here sooner, but someone had put my crutches too far away from me."

Pony looked up, "Sorry Soda."

"That's okay Pony." said Soda with a smile on his face.

The gang knew that their good buddy Sodapop would not be able to smile and goof off like he used to for a long time. Johnny was never the same after being jumped. They all hoped that Soda would be different.

"Hey buddy you can go into the living room? We'll be there in a minute." said Darry looking at his brother.

The smile faded slightly from Soda's face, "Okay." He went into the living room and eased himself off his crutches and onto the couch. He propped up his bandaged foot on the small table in front of him and sighed.

Darry turned back to his friends and his brother.

"What are we going to do about the Soc's who jumped him?" asked Steve.

"We should get them back for nearly killing him." said Two-bit.

"I don't know if Soda would like it if he knew that there would be a fight because of him. Especially now because he's changed." said Pony.

The others nodded in understanding. Darry was quiet in thought.

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"It was real nice of the guys to come over and visit me like that." said Soda with a small smile on his face, "Hey Darry could you come see me in my room. I need to tell you something."

"Sure." said Darry.

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Darry knocked softly on Soda's closed door.

"Come in." said Soda from inside.

Darry opened the door. Soda was in bed with his foot propped up on a pillow and had his back against the bed's headboard. Darry sat on the edge of his bed and looked over at his brother. There was an obscure silence for a moment, then somebody spoke.

"Hey thanks." said Soda avoiding Darry's eyes.

"For what?" asked Darry.

"For basically saving my life." said Soda finally looking up at his older brother. "If it wasn't for you I wouldn't be here."

"Don't say that." Darry felt tears form in his eyes. He knew that he was right.

"You know it's true. I heard the doctors talking about it." Darry could see in Soda's eyes all the hurt, fear and sadness that had taken the place of the once joking and happy Sodapop. "The doctor said that it's a miracle that I'm still alive and functioning like I am. Especially after being jumped." He ran his hand through his blond hair, and took a shaky breath.

"Hey don't you get all worked up about that." said Darry, "We're going to get those Soc's back for doing that to you."

Soda shook his head. "Don't… Then the Soc's would want to fight you for fighting them." said Soda, "It will just keep going on like that until no one's left or somebody stops."

Darry was surprised to hear that coming from Soda. Usually he would be all for a fight. Darry looked at Soda's dim eye's they used to always be bright and cheerful.

"All right little buddy." said Darry, he hugged his brother. "We won't. You should get some sleep."

Soda nodded. "I'm really glad to be home."

"So am I." said Darry as he walked out of the room and closed the door. "So am I…"


	9. Chapter 9

AN: I'm sorry that this has taken so long to type! I have been really busy. I only have about one more chapter to write after this one, and in order for you to read it you need to review this one. I really hope that you enjoy this chapter. As my apologizing gift to you guys I won't make you wait for the final chapter. But I hope that you will still review this one.

Youshi

Chapter 9

A scream rang out during the middle of the night. It had come from the slumbering Sodapop.

"NO!…Stop please!" pleaded Soda. He twisted and turned causing the bed sheets to wrap tightly around him making him thrash even more.

Pony shot up in bed and Darry came running into the room.

"What's wrong?" panted Darry thinking that it was Pony who was screaming, "Did you have that dream again?" Then he spotted Soda , and went to his side. He put a firm hand on his younger brother's shoulder and shook it gently, "Buddy wake up. It's only a dream you're safe." he said softly.

Soda's eyes flew open. They were wide with pure terror. He was breathing heavily, like he had just finished running a mile. He looked up at his older brother. "D-Darr-y" he choked, as he slowly sat up, then he looked over at Pony, "I'm sorry for wakin' you guys up."

"It's alright." said Pony.

A tear slid down Soda's cheek. He put his face in his hands as more tears fell. It was the first time he actually cried since he had been jumped. Pony's heart ached to see his brother like this. Darry hugged Soda close, he could feel Sodapop trembling in his arms. He just sat there hugging and stoking his hair until Soda cried himself back to sleep. Darry gently laid him back down and pulled the covers over his sleeping brother, his face still wet with tears.

Darry said goodnight to Pony and closed the door part way incase Soda had another nightmare.

A few minutes later after Darry had left the room when Pony heard a noise coming from the hall. He quietly got up and stuck his head out into the hall.

A little ways down the hall was Darry sitting against the wall with his face in his hands crying. Actually crying. It was rare to see Darry cry for anything. The last time Pony had seen him cry was at the hospital.

"Darry, are you okay?" asked Ponyboy coming out into the hall and sitting by his brother.

Darry wiped his eyes with his hands and said nothing.

"Darry?" Pony put his arm around his brother's shoulders.

"I can's stand it Ponyboy." said Darry looking straight ahead. "I-I can't stand seeing Soda like this."

"I can't either." said Pony, "But I have an idea that might help him."

A/N: Like I said before I apologize for this chapter being very short. But, the next chapter is much longer.I hope you enjoyed this chapter though! I would really appreciate it if you reviewed it.

Youshi


	10. Chapter 10

A/N Thank you all so much for reading my fan fiction! I really appreciate all of the reviews that you guys gave me and all of the people who have taken the time to read this story. This is the Final chapter of Run Away, I really hope you enjoy it. Please R&R!

Youshi

Chapter 10: The Last Chapter

"Where are we going?" asked Soda. He was stretched out on the backseat of the car with his bandaged foot propped up on a pillow.

"It's a surprise." said Ponyboy, he exchanged a smile with Darry before going back to gazing at the scenery of the country outside of his window of the front passenger seat.

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"Hey little buddy, wake up." said Darry as he gently shook Sodapop.

"A few more minutes..." Soda mumbled, his eyes remaining closed.

After a few hours of driving, they had finally reached their destination. It was a small ranch in the middle of the country. Darry had fixed the roof of the ranch's barn and became aquatinted with the young couple who lived there. They told him that he was welcome to come anytime to visit them.

Darry had called them a couple of days before their visit and told them about the situation with Soda. They said that they would be more than happy to have them.

"No, come on, we're here." said Darry shaking Soda a little more roughly.

Soda opened his eyes and slowly sat up as he yawned. "Now will you tell me where we are?" he asked, running his hand through his sleep tousled blond hair.

"Look around and see for yourself." said Pony as he and Darry helped Soda out of the car and onto his crutches.

Soda's mouth fell open as he looked around, "Is this what I think it is?"

"If you're guessin' that it's a horse ranch then you're right." said Pony smiling at his brother's reaction. It was the most reaction besides fright that he had seen in Soda in months.

Just then the young couple in their late twenties emerged from a small white house that was across the street from a red barn with a few horses grazing in the large field next to it.

"Hello Darry." said the man, "Are these your brothers?"

"Yeah." said Darry, "This is Ponyboy and Sodapop." He put a hand on his brothers' shoulders when he spoke their names.

"Nice to meet you." smiled the woman who was standing next to the man, "My name is Sarah and this is my husband Alex."

"Would you like to see the horses?" asked Alex.

"Yeah," said Soda smiling. The smile was nothing compared to what it used to be.

They walked across the road towards the barn. Alex pushed aside the large barn door.

"Here we are." said Alex.

Inside there were stalls along the barn walls. Most of them were occupied by horses. One of the horses stuck it's head out to see who had entered the barn. Soda smiled again and made his way over to it, with his brothers, Alex, and Sarah behind him.

Soda leaned one crutch against the horse's stall and reached up and petted the horse's neck.

The horse looked exactly like Soda's old horse Mickey. From the color of it's coat and mane to the slightly crazed look in it's eyes.

"His name is Lightning." said Alex. "Would you like to ride him?"

"Golly, of course I would!" said Soda grinning.

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"All set?" asked Alex, after he and Darry had spent the last few minutes helping Soda get into the saddle, in the corral.

Soda nodded.

"Remember to start out slow so he can get used to you." said Alex walking out of the large corral and closing the gate behind him. He then joined his wife and the Curtis brothers behind the fence.

Soda clicked his tongue and Lighting started off at a slow trot. After a few timed around the circle, Lighting slowly started to increase his speed until he was galloping.

When Soda and Lightning passed Darry and Pony the brothers exchanged smiles again. Soda was smiling like he used to before he had gotten jumped. The real healing had finally begun.

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"Take it easy Sodapop!" yelled Dr. Lewis down the hall.

Soda had just gotten the rest of his bandages taken off of his leg. He had been taking therapy for a few weeks before. He had to relearn how to use his leg. And now his therapy had paid off, he was sprinting down the hospital hallway to the waiting room without any shoes on.

There was a chorus of "Hey Soda" when he came into the view of his brothers, Two-bit and Steve.

"Hey little buddy." said Darry standing up and his hand on his brother's shoulder, "What did the doctor say?"

"I'm good as new," said Soda smiling, "Well except for the scars."

"That's great," said Steve, "The girls down at the DX have been buggin' me with their questions about how you're doin'." he added with a laugh.

Soda grinned his famous grin at his friend. Soda was finally back to his old self, thanks to the many visits to Alex and Sarah's ranch. Every now and then Soda would wake up hollering and terrified about his nightmares about being jumped, but he was always able to calm down after.

The scars and the memories will always haunt him forever but he'll always be Sodapop Curtis.

A/N I hope you enjoyed the last chapter of Run Away!

Youshi


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